The bannings effectively destroy the third largest political alliance in Iraq just months ahead of the election, and are seen by many as an attempt by the Maliki government to cement its hold on power.

So Uncle Joe swoops into Iraq to do what? Make sure the serfs are behaving? Check up on the no-vote lists? This "election" was to have happened ages ago but keeps getting delayed. Hmmm. Makes you wonder what surprises are just around the corner in the Spring.

[…] the ban of over 500 candidates already raising eyebrows at home and abroad and Vice President Joe Biden scrambling to Iraq to try to calm charges of a sectarian purge, the chairman of Iraq’s Independent High […]